The Government of Alberta funds School Boards to provide transportation to a resident student, if the resident student resides more than 2.4 km from their designated school. In addition, the Government of Alberta does not require School Boards to transport students residing less than 2.4 km from their designated school. However, Peace River School Division, in co-operative agreements with Holy Family Catholic Regional Division, Grande Prairie Catholic School District and Conseil scolaire du Nord-Ouest will transport the student less than 2.4 km from their designated school if room is available on the school bus and they purchase a bus pass.

Definitions:

Designated school - the school in which a Board, not a parent, has directed a resident student

Resident student – a student within the Board/Divisional boundary, in which the student’s parent resides

Please note: if each parent is a resident of a different school district or division, the parents shall choose in writing their primary division/district.

NEW SCHOOL BUS REGISTRATION PROCEDURES FOR 2020-2021

To improve parent's waiting times during August & September the Transportation Department is now accepting bus registrations for the 2020-2021 school year.

You will need to submit a registration form if:

You purchased a bus pass for your student in the previous year

Your students attend a school in the Town of Peace River AND you wish to use the interschool bussing service.

Your student is new or has changed school divisions.

Your primary address has changed.

You do not need to submit a registration form if:

Your student is a resident student who is attending the same school division as the previous year and was a bus rider in 2019-2020 school year.

DEADLINES

If you are required to purchase a bus pass through SchoolCash, bus service will be provided for those who pay or schedule their fees by June 30th. Anyone who purchases a bus pass after July 1st, will be put in a queue and dealt with in the order the registration/fees were received. If parents are encountering financial hardships a Waiver of Fees Application must be submitted to their Division’s Central Office for approval. Please allow time for processing. Any rejected fees that occur throughout the school year, may result in services being discontinued.

If you require interschool bus service in the Town of Peace River, and you live within the 2.4km boundary, you must register before June 30. For students who move into the 2.4km boundary after June 30, you must register before August 1.

All other students who are currently not registered on the school bus are advised to fill out a registration form at our online website, BusPlanner before June 30.

If you’re unsure if your child is still registered on a bus, you can login into BusPlanner. If you do not see bus stop information, the child is not registered on a bus. If the bus stop information is indicated, your child is registered on a bus.

We hope that the procedures indicated will help reduce the stress of an already, very chaotic time of year!

Kindly note that the Student Transportation Office remains open during July and August for all regular services including phone calls, email and all other information services.

Transportation for Currently Enrolled Students

Bus registration form does not work with Safari please use Google Chrome or Explorer

All currently enrolled students can utilize the online bus registration form by clicking

on at www.prsd.ab.ca and selecting Busplanner. Once in the BusPlanner website, click on the Parent Portal. You will be required to login or create an account using your email and a password.

Click on the “Parent” drop down arrow to review your current information.

To update any information regarding your child, click on “Online Forms and Requests” selection, and enter a new registration form.

Click submit for your registration to be placed into the queue

Watch your email for further instructions after you have submitted your bus registration

As per the Student Transportation Regulations of Alberta, if a student is enrolled in a school but does not reside in the attendance/transportation service for that school, the student or the parent shall provide transportation for the student:

to and from the school attended, or

to and from a designated stop on a bus route in the transportation service area for that school, or

between the site of the school and a point nearest the students residence on a bus route in the transportation service area for that school

To see which School Attendance/Transportation boundary you reside in, enter your physical address after clicking our “Can I Ride A Bus” icon?”

Out of boundary students will no longer be required to register annually unless their residence affects routing. Those affected, will be sent correspondence in May or June to register on BusPlanner for approval, before they are permitted to ride the school bus.

Please note a bus pass fee will be charged if the child resides less than 2.4 km from their designated school.

2020-2021 Bus Pass FeesPRSD has been able to maintain this rate since 2013!

Per Student $450.00*

Family Rate (3+) $1,125.00

*This annual rate is approximately $2.50/day to transport a student to and from school

Full payments are encouraged, however, if you require an installment plan, the option is only available on SchoolCash.

Students will be unable to board the school bus until payment has been scheduled in SchoolCash

Interschool (School to School) Busing

Effective the 2020-2021 School Year, parents whose students attend school in the Town of Peace River will be required to register ANNUALLY for interschool busing. All other communities will keep the students who were registered last year to the same enrolment as the previous year excluding any extra stops. Check BusPlanner to ensure your student is enrolled in the service you require.

Since interschool busing is a FREE service offered by the Board/Division for the students to be transported from one school to another school within the same community, please contact the Transportation Department if this service is no longer required, as typically there is a waiting list.

Interschool is offered only if room permits

To register for interschool busing please register from the 'Parents & Students' icon at www.prsd.ab.ca and indicate interschool required under the “Alternate/Interschool” (you'll need the physical address of the school your child will be using to get on and off at, otherwise the form will not submit)

Helpful Hints

Our registration process is online where you can register in the convenience of your own home 24/7

During our peak times (mid-August to mid-October) and at the end of each month, please register 5-10 business days ahead of time to avoid any service delays

Know your rural emergency address (blue or green sign at the end of your driveway) or civic/physical address (10501 88 St) for the registration process.

If your child has any special needs, medical conditions or serious allergies, please advise our office.

If your child is attending a Pre-K program or is under 5 years old, they will be required to complete a “school bus readiness” evaluation administered by the school they wish to attend before they can ride the school bus. Please contact our office if you have any questions.

If you are purchasing a bus pass please make sure you have your credit card or banking information available to enter on our secure webpage

Show your child where his or her bus stop is located and how to get there. If parents are not comfortable with allowing their child to walk alone to and from the stop, parents may want to seek arrangements for a bus buddy from their neighbourhood

Students in Kindergarten and Grade 1 must be accompanied by a responsible person when getting on or off the bus.

A bus driver is only permitted to let students off at their designated stop unless written documentation has been authorized from the school. Please see our “Bus Notes” section for more details.

Bus Drivers are not permitted to relocate stops. The School Board has set out criteria in which the Department is required to follow, when stops are being created

NOTIFICATION OF DELAYS OR CANCELLATIONS

School bus delays and cancellations may be viewed by visiting www.prsd.ab.ca or any school website by clicking on the “Routes” icon at the top of their webpages

We recommend creating a subscription to your student’s school bus Delays & Cancellations to ensure you are notified in a timely fashion of any changes to their bussing schedule. Delays or cancellations can happen unexpectedly with short notice and having a subscription will help you get information faster.

Click on “My Subscriptions” to sign up for notification of school bus delays or cancellations. You may be notified by email or *NEW* by text message. You can enter up to five cell phone numbers to receive notification of delays or cancellations.

For further information on Transportation Services, please refer to the Peace River School website or call (780)624-3006 or toll free 1-800-816-4711